Predetermination and Kubrick’s “The Shining”

Stanley Kubrick The Shining Free Will Critics and scholars have been debating the meaning behind Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining (1980) for more than three decades. A recent documentary, Room 237, which is available for viewing in theaters and through Amazon, explores the possible meanings behind the film, prompting a response in the form of this visual essay “Free Will In Kubrick’s The Shining” provided through Vimeo . The essay is by Dr. Drew Morton, who is an Assistant Professor of Mass Communication at Texas A&M University-Texarkana. Dr. Morton argues that Kubrick made the film about the “predetermined damnation” of Jack Torrence, played by Jack Nicholson.

Using split screen video and some of the disturbing scenes from the film, Morton compares Kubrick’s film to Stephen King‘s novel, noting how King focused on a decent man haunted by the ghosts of the house while Kubrick changed it to focus on a flawed main character is haunted by his own ghosts. Kubrick focused on the psychological instead of the supernatural in King’s novel, and Morton explains how the film foreshadows Jack’s predetermined future. If you are interested in Kubrick’s work, the 18-minute video is worth your time.

Free Will in Kubrick’s THE SHINING from Drew Morton on Vimeo.

Morton makes some interesting arguments, and other films have addressed themes of free will and predetermination. For example, many film noir movies tackle such complicated themes about fate and will. Anyway, I would like to see Morton take a similar approach to interpreting Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut (1999).

What do you think about the free will theory of “The Shining”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Slaid Cleaves Reminds Us We Are “Still Fighting the War”

    Slaid Cleaves Song About PTSD Iraq War

    Texas singer-songwriter Slaid Cleaves is one of those artists I really like but have not always kept up with all of their albums. I first discovered Cleaves with his 2000 release Broke Down, which is an outstanding album with a great title track. I have since kept up with some of his music, but not all of it. Listening today to to a stream of his upcoming Still Fighting the War (2013) reminds me that I need to catch up on the parts of his catalog I have missed.

    As Iraq and Afghanistan have drifted off of our front pages, the title track to the new album is a sharp reminder that people will be dealing with the aftershocks of these wars for years and decades to come. The song “Still Fighting the War” was inspired by a powerful Pulitzer Prize-winning series of photos about Iraq War veteran Scott Ostrom who came back from Iraq with post-traumatic stress disorder.

    The song “Still Fighting the War” was co-written by Ron Coy and the album track has Jimmy LaFave on harmony. Check out a live performance of “Still Fighting the War” below.

    On the rest of the album, Cleaves continues to reflect on the ups and downs of real life existence. “Welder’s Hands” was inspired by his father, who was a welder. In “Rust Belt Fields,” Cleaves sings about those hard-hit by the economy, and “Hometown USA” touches on broken dreams. Other songs highlight the singer’s aching voice singing about love and love-lost, like “Gone” and “I Bet She Does.”

    There are some lighter moments too, and “God’s Own Yodeler” is a touching tribute to Texas singer Don Walser. One of my favorites on the new album is the upbeat “Texas Love Song,” where Cleaves sings about loving his sweetheart even more then he loves Texas. Check it out.



    Still Fighting the War     was released June 18, and Cleaves made the album available through Pandora. For a limited time, you may order a signed copy of the CD through the Slaid Cleaves website. Cleaves donated some proceeds to Operation Homefront. Good music for a good cause.

    What is your favorite Slaid Cleaves song? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Seinfeld’s Second Season of Comedians, Cars, and Coffee

    Jerry Seinfeld just launched the second season of his web series, Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. The promo shows that the season includes Chris Rock, David Letterman, Seth Meyers, Sarah Silverman, and Don Rickles [2016 Update: The video is no longer available]. The series is pretty much what the title says, as each short episode features Seinfeld with a different car hanging out with another comedian getting coffee and talking.

    You can watch the series on the Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee website, which currently features the first episode of the new season with Sarah Silverman, “I’m Going To Change Your Life Forever”.

    What do you think of “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Marty Brown on WKCT Radio & “Whatever Makes You Smile”

    Marty Brown Whatever Makes You Smile

    Country singer Marty Brown’s wife Shellie reported to us today that the rising America’s Got Talent star appeared today on the Laura Ingraham Show to talk music. Ingraham’s website describes the show: “Up-and-coming country star Marty Brown talks about his experience on America’s Got Talent.” Unfortunately you cannot hear her show on her website unless you subscribe to join the “Laura 365 Revolution,” but you can catch the show for free through WKCT radio, 930 AM (Bowling Green, Kentucky), playing online. If you want to avoid all the politics, Brown is the second guest. The show is supposed to repeat throughout the day, although I have not been able to catch it yet. Check out WKCT’s website. (August 8, 2013 Update: A podcast of the interview is now available on PodcastOne.)

    In the meantime, I have noticed Marty Brown has posted some additional short videos of informal acoustic performances. For those who were touched to see how Shellie got Marty on America’s Got Talent, here is Marty Brown performing a song he wrote for his wife, “Whatever Makes You Smile.” On YouTube, he writes that he wrote the song as a Valentine’s Day present, citing the lines “Like the tin man, the lion, and the scarecrow,/ I’ll follow you down life’s Golden Road./ Whatever makes you smile!!” There is no fancy production, just a man and his guitar giving a nice performance of another excellent Marty Brown unreleased original.

    If you would like to hear Marty Brown doing a cover song, in this video he sings the Neil Diamond classic, “Forever in Blue Jeans.”



    Are you watching “America’s Got Talent”? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Listen to What Paul McCartney Said (and Sang) on “The Colbert Report”

    Last night, Stephen Colbert was absolutely giddy about having Paul McCartney on his show The Colbert Report. During the interview segment, Colbert led McCartney into an interesting discussion about McCartney’s band Wings and his pre-Wings band, The Beatles.

    One of the reasons for the McCartney appearance was to promote a new remastered version of Wings Over America (1976). But some of the most interesting parts of the interview were where McCartney discussed the great Wings album, Band on the Run (1973).

    McCartney also performed five songs during the show: “I’ve Just Seen a Face,” “Hi, Hi, Hi,” “Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite,” “Listen to What the Man Said,” and “Lady Madonna.” He also performed a web-exclusive version of “Birthday.” Below is his performance of “Listen to What the Man Said.” [2016 Update: Unfortunately, the videos from the show are no longer available.]

    How did it all fit into the half-hour show? Well, they had to expand The Colbert Report to a half hour to fit it all in, and of course it was worth every minute. You may catch the full episode on The Colbert Report website.

    What is your favorite part of the interview? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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